Charlotte messenger. [volume] (Charlotte, Mecklenburg Co., N.C.) 1882-18??, 1887-11-26

Crocifssa regarded the now infuriatcd
lady with blank amazement; she had ex-
pected praise for her handiwork, instead
Of these flaming eyes bent angrily upon
her.
Mrs. Webster rang the bell with sharp
violence, and demanded the instant pres
ence of the padrone. "How dare you,"
she cried, as he appeared, "try to cheat
me SO outrageouslyg"
The padrone, mystifed as was Croci-
fissa at the lady's excitement, stared in
helpless silence. Presently he found
voice enough to falter: II do not under
stand; will the signora please to ex-
plain?"
"You finished rascal, you know very
well what mean! You showed me this
lace, letting me bel ere it was old, and
now this girl-she is innocent enough
confesses that she made it herself What
have you to say for yourself, sirg"
''Dio miol Why-I thought-but it
is old, signora-behold, it is quite dirty.
l feared the signora would desire a
freshcr piece, and my heart was light
when she seemed to wish to have it old
The s;gnora did not mention how old it
must be, hence this misunderstanding,
which regret deeply"
If occasionally tempted into falsehood,
IKE the most OF his kind, the padrone
on this occasion spoke the truth. He
was simple fellow, ignorant of the craze
of the elegant world for antiquities; he
had not troubled himself to inquire the
history of Crocifissa's lace, but had salts
! fed his conscience by asking its value of
nm old woman of the village, an authority
in such matters.
But the irate Mrs. Webster was not to
be appeased The padrone had tried to
cheat her as cgregionsly as any hardened
rogue in the lowest of junkshops.
Here" to Crocifssa, ''take your lace;
have changed my mind, and will not
have It'll and she tossed the dainty work
into basket on the girls arm.
"But, signorap' cried the poor child,
burs ing into tears, and extending both
hands imploringiy.
Leave the room at once, both of you'll"
said Mrs. Webster, ,callously. 81 cannot
have scene here. The way of the trans
gressor is hard, you know, and you must
take th1 conse iuences of your evil
deeds"
Poor Crocifssa! how she retraced her
tired steps to Piatico, empty handed,
with the unlucky lace in her basket, she
never knew. The situation was really
deplorable-a the necessaries for their
humble housekeeping almost in their
possession, the rooms engaged, and not
franc to pay for ANYTHING. The little
community was loud in It's expressions of
rage at the inhuman woman who had so
deceived Crocifissa, but this mended
matters not at all.
A day or two later Reno sought us
out, despair on his handsome face. Cro-
cifissa was i'll, of grief only, but 60 low
and miserable, that Reno feared the
worst The poor girl was really in q
pitiable state, and after our visit to the
hovel where she lived. Amy and l de-
clared we would not see another sunset
before we had tried to set on foot some
project that might benefit the unhappy
child
! There were crowds of strangers at the
hotel at Abetone; why should they not
know Of the sad lit lie romance at Piati-
90? With the assistance of our kind
hostess, the affair was made public. and
we arranged lottery by which to dis,
pose of Crocifssa's lace.
F.; TO our great delight, tickets to the
value of nearly three hundred flames
were sold, the money of course, being
poured into the lap of the bewildered
Crocifssa, well nigh beside herself with
these sudden transitions from despair to
Joy twice repeated.
The modest trousseGu and furniture
were paid for, and there was a little sum
left over for rainy day. Amy and ]
delayed our stay, to be present at the
wedding in October; and very merry
affair Z was, thanks to the change
in public opinion, which now regarded
Reno and Crocifssa as the hero and
heroine of the village
The old hostler at our inn won the lace
As he had not chick nor child to give it
to, and one or two old sins on his con-
science, he gave his winning to the
Church.
And thus it came about that the
Madonna's silken robe is so richly decor
ated. Frank Leslie's.